An additional exit for Pape station intended to provide riders with another way to leave the subway platform in the case of emergencies is now open.

The structure on Lipton Avenue, located just north of the station, was completed late last year and was the final piece of a $37 million station-wide restoration which also included a new elevator, a covered bus waiting area, better bicycle parking and public art.

“It’s an exit only, it is for safety and convenience, but primarily a safety feature,” said TTC spokesperson Brad Ross about the new structure.

“It’s physically intended to get people off the platform as quickly as possible.”

Pape, which accommodated 25,000 subway riders on an average weekday from 2012 to 2013, was one of 14 stations deemed a priority for an additional station exit following a fire and safety assessment back in 2002. Since then six locations have been completed.

An advisory panel of transit experts is expected to report back to the TTC board in 2014 with recommendations for the remaining future exit locations.

Part of its mandate is to determine whether it is financially feasible to also include station entrances within future second exit designs.

Ross said there are no plans to retrofit any existing second exits to add an entrance.

“We’re not revisiting what’s already been done,” he said. “You’d need a bigger facility, a bigger footprint for an exit and an entrance. You’d have to have more turnstiles and other things.”

Work on an additional exit to serve Woodbine station, located at the intersection of Woodbine Avenue and Strathmore Boulevard, is expected to begin later this year.